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23 May, 2012

My hopefullness on the rockmelon was not well founded, as it turns out.

I picked my solo rockmelon as its stem had withered and dried, but my hope was diminishing. A ripe rockmelon calls to you; when I have grown them in previous years I knew they were ripe as I was meandering around the garden and got the indefinably sweet smell of ripe rockmelon. This time: nada, nothing, not a whiff of sweetness was to be had.

But I picked it anyway.

And when I got it to the kitchen I cut it open and it was a joyless mush of orange flesh. I tasted it anyway. It tasted like a supermarket rockmelon, but a vague semblance of its potential flavour.

But amongst the anguish there twinkled a small spark of potential, many in fact.

Seeds.

And so I carefully picked out the tiny rockmelon seeds, washed them and layed them out to dry.

07 May, 2012

While the summer months are but now a distant memory, and winter is no longer closing in but really here to stay, I'm hoping for summer crops. Specifically melon.

I grew both various watermelons and rockmelons over summer. The watermelons were spectacular and I got a decent crop out of those, but the rockmelons languished. I've been reading up a bit and it appears that the rockmelons (despite what you would expect with their various names) demand quite a bit water and preferably heavy mulching (I tried on the water front, but failed on the mulch) while watermelons are much less picky.

So not really suprise results then. I will try again next year and see if more water and mulching produces better results.

But in the meantime, my remaining rockmelon has actually got a fruit on it! So I'm hoping with some care and affection and coddling I may actually get something worth eating.

03 May, 2012

Alls I can say is - mwah ha hahah!!!

For those for whom this does not make sense, a little back story will make things clear. When I first started planning the fruit and veg garden back in 2009, I was planning for apples. At about the same time my Dad had an apple tree-ling that sprouted from an apple core of his, and he (in his wisdom) bet me that he would have apples before I would.

My first 3 apple trees arrived in 2009 - a Fuji, a Sundowner and a Grand Duke Constantine. I have since expanded my apple tree collection to 22 trees, plus a few more which I purchased today, but I will expand on this later. I have better things to brag about now!

The year before last the trees flowered for the first time (again beating Dad's tree, which only fruited last year!), and set some fruit, but they all dropped over the following months, except for the last apple which when it was about a 10cent piece size a callous insect chewed through the stalk, leaving the tiny apple intact. It's a cruel world.

This year both of our trees flowered, and I was worried. But only my tree set fruit! I have been jealously guarding these babies since infancy, and particularly of late against the marauding possums which I know steal apples from around the area, as they so charmingly leave half eaten apples around my yard.

This photo is of the Fuji (try to get at these apples, bastards!) According to the guru's at Woodbridge Fruit Trees they are supposed to ripen June-July in a colder climate than mine here, so I thought it was time to give them a try.

Delicious!

Now more on apples and less on winning bets!

As I said before, I have 22 apple trees. And yes, my place is a (slightly less than) traditional quarter acre suburban block. How does that work, I hear you ask. The secret is they are all very dwarfing trees and most are espaliered. Check out the Woodbridge Fruit Trees site here for more info - they are awesome! My trees were all purchased here and they are all on M26 rootstock, meaning they only grow 2-2.5m tall and can be trained smaller.

I started with the aforementioned Fuji, Sundowner and Grand Duke Constantine. The following year (2010) I purchased a White Transparent, Devonshire Quarrendon, Esopus Spritzenburg, Bramley's Seedling, St Edmunds Pippin, Huonville Crab, Granny Smith, Pine Golden Pippin and Court Pendu Plat; which gave me a grand total of 12 trees.

This clearly wasn't enough.

Last year I wanted to round out my collection, and purchased an Australian Beauty, Tydeman's Early Worcester, Summer Strawberry, Fenouillet Gris, Forfar Pippin, Red Cleopatra, Caville Blanc D'Hilver, Freyberg, Lady Williams and Duke of Clarence.

Whew!

You would think that would be enough, wouldn't you... But no. Today I purchased some step-over of Pink Lady and Woodbridge Winter Pippin to line the path up to the front door. Step-overs are extrememly dwarfing trees that you can essentially grow as one low growing branch of less than half-a-metre high (i.e. short enough to step over). So they aren't really trees... kinda.

And - though I hesitate to say it - I couldn't resist a Dabinette and a King David; both cider trees, and I have only a slight idea of where they will fit. But that is a problem for another day. Today I will simply bask in dreams of apple-y grandeur!